melissa ohden

To anyone else casually passing by us in the airport, we’re just two women, two friends, laughing probably a bit too loudly, our words rattling off at a clip of what seems to be a mile a minute, as we perch on our seats, trying to squeeze a lifetime of conversation into the span of […]

As originally posted on The Mighty on March 27, 2015: “So what. So what if she’s a little smaller than other people. So what if she eats through a feeding tube. So what if she isn’t crawling or talking like other babies her age. She’s just fine the way she is and everybody’s different.” If […]

As originally published on The Mighty in March 2015: To my daughter’s complex medical issues, We don’t know yet if you have a formal name, like “syndrome,” “disease” or “disorder,” or if you’re just a random group of health issues, but I’ll be honest. I wouldn’t really feel the need to call you be your […]

I share the following prayer on prayer cards that John Motschall of Michigan is so kind to print through his family ministry. For those who don’t have the chance to receive one at an event, here is my prayer not only for myself, but for you, too:

“Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you”–Jeremiah 1:5.

Father God, I pray that you help me to always remember that You are the creator and author of life. You knew me long before I was born or even conceived. You wrote the story of my life before I was living in it and you set out a purpose and a plan for me long ago.

Lord, help me to accept the person that you made me to be, blessings, difficulties, and all. Help me to recognize the plans and purpose for my life and to know there is no purpose too big or too small in this world, as you are the one who gave it to me…

Some posts have been, in my opinion, particularly powerful, so I want to repost them from time to time. Here is one of those posts.

As first published on LifeNews (http://www.lifenews.com/2012/12/13/daughter-but-mommy-my-brother-was-born-in-your-belly/), on December 13, 2012 and o n this site on December 17, 2012:

“The day that Gabriel was born and you told me about it was the best day of my life.” I dropped the laundry that I was folding and turned to Olivia as she said this recently, my heart in my stomach.

Just over a year has passed since we lost our son, Gabriel, through a miscarriage at 11 weeks, and I had thought that Olivia was more than well aware of what had happened (as well aware as a four-year-old can be).

Many of you have heard me say this, and you know that not only do I mean it, but it has happened. The negative ripple effect of abortion in my biological family, the negative ripple effect that it has had across generations, has ended with me. New life, forgiveness, love, and hope now abound in its’ place.

I know that ending that negative ripple effect is not unique to me, however. All of us have the great opportunity to have the ripple effect of abortion in our families, in our communities, in our nations, end with us.

I am happy to share that in order to further share this message with the world, my ministry is now offering the following t-shirt (pictures are of the front and back). More merchandise will be coming soon and will be offered both through this website and at events where I am speaking. To order or for more information, please feel free to contact me.

Some posts have been, in my opinion, particularly powerful, so I want to repost them from time to time. Here is one of those posts.

As published in National Right to Life News Today on March 6, 2013:

No truer words, I believe, have ever been spoken by the child of a pro-life activist than those of my daughter Olivia recently: “I wish other people knew that it was wrong to kill babies so that you wouldn’t have to be gone all of the time to teach them that.”

As a mother, my heart grieves these words that she spoke as I was preparing to leave “yet again,” (as Olivia describes my frequent trips). But at the same time, I am thankful that Olivia understands both the importance of what I do and what it’s going to take to end abortion.

In an interview in March with Planned Parenthood president Cecile Richards, Fusion TV’s Jorge Ramos asked Richards the question of all questions, “When does life start? When does a human being become a human being?” I’ve personally wanted to ask her that question, and specifically, about when she thought my life began (before, during or after I survived the failed abortion), for a long time!

As posted in National Right to Life News Today on April 16, 2014: Perhaps you may have noticed that I haven’t been writing as much in recent months. There is a reason for this that I would like to share with you. As much as I am very busy as wife, mother (who is currently […]

I share all of this to answer many of the common questions that I know exist about survivors, but also because I hope that you use this information to educate others. Far too often, I have heard the complaint that not enough survivors speak out and share their stories, and I’ve experienced pro-lifers not understanding the circumstances and experiences that lead survivors to not share or get involved in the fight for life in the manner that I have.

In fact, I once had a pro-life radio personality call survivors ‘flakes’ for not sharing their stories. Please, before you judge a survivor for not speaking up or out, remember this article and the inherent struggles that we face. It’s not often that a survivor won’t share of their survival openly, but more likely, that they can’t, due to physical, emotional, mental, spiritual, or even social struggles. Some days, it is still hard for even me.

If you are a survivor or know a survivor and would like to be in contact with the Abortion Survivors Network, please visit: www.theabortionsurvivors.com.

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Melissa is the survivor of a failed saline infusion abortion in 1977. Despite the initial concerns regarding Melissa’s future after surviving the attempt to end her life ....Melissa and her husband Ryan have a daughter, Olivia, whose birth at the same hospital where Melissa’s life was supposed to end, has significantly shaped Melissa’s ministry.